Building Trust

Trust is at the heart of our ability to succeed in an interdependent world.  In spite of our amazing technological advances, the work of an organization is accomplished by people. Technology has provided us with better tools, but it is still people who do the work of an organization and are ultimately responsible for its success.
      
If we want to build trusting relationships with others, then we must start with ourselves and be certain to act in a trustworthy manner.  As we improve our own trustworthiness, we change the nature of our relationships and make it easier for others to act in a trustworthy way toward us.
 
When experiencing conflict or problems of trust, it is a natural tendency to believe that others are at fault.  Not only is this usually a distorted view of reality, but it also makes solving problems more difficult because the only person we truly can control is ourselves.  We improve our relationships with others not by changing them but by changing how we are
in relation to them.

Essential Elements of a Trusting Relationship
Integrity - acting according to a set of principles or values
Competence - performing roles and responsibilities successfully
Compassion - caring about the needs of others
      
Create a safe and trusting environment by being non-judgmental, listening with empathy, and responding with appreciation.  Find out what is important to others.  Agree on clear, common goals.  Make collaborative decisions.  In a conflict situation, keep in mind that the problem is "ours" rather than "mine" or "yours".
 
Until next time...







Sheryl Tuchman, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
http://tools2succeed.com/